USA Projects

Today marks the last day for my USA project and the final glimpse of the first piece for my show. These images show the nearly completed piece--I still have some surface work in the form of scratched details to add and I may paint a few more cubes for better visual balance. At this time I am taking a short break to work on other pieces.

I have also included a picture of the necklace it was...

The seven weeks of fundraising for my USA project have been incredible for a number of reasons. Months ago when I was first approached to submit a project I wasn't interested--the idea of asking people for help made me feel uncomfortable and seemed like something I definitely did not want to do. Then I took some time to think about it and I realized I had to follow-through. It was a ...

Week 7 and a sixth glimpse AND my final week of fundraising! How time flies! (My deadline is NEXT Monday, May 9!) These new images show the masked necklace with spray paint layered in white and light blue. I chose light blue because the original necklace was made of light blue rhinestones. I know it's hard to tell from the images but only certain cubes are painted. Next week I will...

Welcome to week 6 and your fifth glimpse, the masking process. Originally I planned to spray paint the entire necklace with light blue paint, but after seeing how the piece reflects light I knew I couldn't cover-up all that shine. Instead I decided to play on the light effects and only paint a few pieces. Masking was made very tricky then and I began by very carefully masking each...

It's now week 5 and time for a fourth glimpse of my first solo show piece! These images show the completed necklace after I connected all the cubes with "staples" followed by tumble-polishing overnight. Once I had the necklace arranged on the dress form, I discovered all those sparkling light effects which I was not expecting. Next week I will talk about how they made me change my...

This week's glimpse shows the first stage of the construction of the necklace. Once I had figured out how many cubes I needed to make the necklace, I made wire "staples" that act as the connectors between each cube element--one end of each staple was melted into a small ball. I pierced two holes in each cube and sanded away the burs left behind after drilling. I then began to connect the...

Yesterday just before lunch I received the donation that brought me to my goal. It was such an amazing moment. I stood there dumbfounded and then let out a huge scream. Thank you for making me feel this way. Thank you for every donation, every encouraging email, every Facebook comment, every Twitter retweet, and all the high fives around the Penland campus. I feel like I am part of an...

Last week I began to reveal images of the first piece for my solo show. After creating a scale paper model I began working with a 12" x 6" sheet of 26 gauge sterling silver. I cut the sheet into strips and then began scoring them by filing a groove into the metal. Once I had three grooves I used my saw to make smaller pieces and folded these at the grooves using pliers. I also did a lot...

$100 Donor Perk-Sterling Silver Bow Pin

Hello! Just a few updates... I've added images of the donor rewards or "perks" to my USA project page. You can find the showcase here:

http://www.unitedstatesartists.org/showcase/donor_rewards_perks

For a donation of $50 you get a Graffiti Badge in the color of your choice.

For a $100 donation you get a sterling silver Bow Pin.

For a donation of $500...

Over the coming weeks I will be posting images of the first piece I started for my solo show. It is based on a light blue rhinestone necklace I played with as a kid. At that time I saw this necklace as the ultimate in opulence and I remember I loved just holding it. I am lucky enough to still have this piece in my possession, but have chosen to not look at it until this new necklace...